Gibraltar (2004) | Bangladesh (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 5 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi; note - there may be one additional division named Sylhet |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 18% (male 2,554; female 2,452)
15-64 years: 66.2% (male 9,460; female 8,965) 65 years and over: 15.8% (male 1,939; female 2,463) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 33.8% (male 23,069,242; female 21,995,457)
15-64 years: 62.8% (male 42,924,778; female 40,873,077) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 2,444,314; female 2,069,816) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | none | rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry |
Airports | 1 (2003 est.) | 18 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 15
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 6 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total: 6.5 sq km
land: 6.5 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 144,000 sq km
land: 133,910 sq km water: 10,090 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Iowa |
Background | Strategically important, Gibraltar was ceded to Great Britain by Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht; the British garrison was formally declared a colony in 1830. In referendums held in 1967 and 2002, Gibraltarians ignored Spanish pressure and voted overwhelmingly to remain a British dependency. | Bangladesh came into existence in 1971 when Bengali East Pakistan seceded from its union with West Pakistan. About a third of this extremely poor country floods annually during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development. |
Birth rate | 10.99 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 25.12 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $307 million
expenditures: $284 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY00/01 est.) |
revenues: $4.9 billion
expenditures: $6.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
Capital | Gibraltar | Dhaka |
Climate | Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers | tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October) |
Coastline | 12 km | 580 km |
Constitution | 30 May 1969 | 4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972, suspended following coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986, amended many times |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Gibraltar |
conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh
conventional short form: Bangladesh former: East Pakistan |
Currency | Gibraltar pound (GIP) | taka (BDT) |
Death rate | 9.05 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 8.47 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | NA (2000 est.) | $17 billion (2000) (2000) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Mary Ann PETERS
embassy: Madani Avenue, Baridhara, Dhaka 1212 mailing address: G. P. O. Box 323, Dhaka 1000 telephone: [880] (2) 8824700 through 8824722 FAX: [880] (2) 8823744 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Syed Hasan AHMAD
chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183 FAX: [1] (202) 244-5366 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York |
Disputes - international | since Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum in 2003 against a "total shared sovereignty" arrangement, talks between the UK and Spain over the fate of the 300-year-old UK colony have stalled; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomy | only a small portion of the boundary with India remains undelimited; discussions to demarcate the boundary, exchange 162 miniscule enclaves, and allocate divided villages remain stalled; skirmishes, illegal border trafficking, and violence along the border continue; Bangladesh has protested India's attempts to fence off high traffic sections of the porous boundary; Burmese attempts to construct a dam on the border stream in 2001 prompted an armed response halting construction; Burmese Muslim refugees migrate into Bangladesh straining meager resources |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $1.575 billion |
Economy - overview | Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade, offshore banking, and its position as an international conference center. The British military presence has been sharply reduced and now contributes about 7% to the local economy, compared with 60% in 1984. The financial sector, tourism (almost 5 million visitors in 1998), shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. The financial sector, the shipping sector, and tourism each contribute 25%-30% of GDP. Telecommunications accounts for another 10%. In recent years, Gibraltar has seen major structural change from a public to a private sector economy, but changes in government spending still have a major impact on the level of employment. | Despite sustained domestic and international efforts to improve economic and demographic prospects, Bangladesh remains a poor, overpopulated, and ill-governed nation. Although more than half of GDP is generated through the service sector, nearly two-thirds of Bangladeshis are employed in the agriculture sector, with rice as the single most important product. Major impediments to growth include frequent cyclones and floods, inefficient state-owned enterprises, inadequate port facilities, a rapidly growing labor force that cannot be absorbed by agriculture, delays in exploiting energy resources (natural gas), insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. Economic reform is stalled in many instances by political infighting and corruption at all levels of government. Progress also has been blocked by opposition from the bureaucracy, public sector unions, and other vested interest groups. The BNP government, led by Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA, has the parliamentary strength to push through needed reforms, but the party's level of political will to do so has been lacking. |
Electricity - consumption | 93 million kWh (2001) | 12.548 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 100 million kWh (2001) | 13.493 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 92%
hydro: 8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Rock of Gibraltar 426 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural freshwater resources: large concrete or natural rock water catchments collect rainwater (no longer used for drinking water) and adequate desalination plant | many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; water-borne diseases prevalent in surface water; water pollution, especially of fishing areas, results from the use of commercial pesticides; ground water contaminated by naturally occurring arsenic; intermittent water shortages because of falling water tables in the northern and central parts of the country; soil degradation and erosion; deforestation; severe overpopulation |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese, German, North Africans | Bengali 98%, tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims (1998) |
Exchange rates | Gibraltar pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998); note - the Gibraltar pound is at par with the British pound | taka per US dollar - 57.756 (January 2002), 55.807 (2001), 52.142 (2000), 49.085 (1999), 46.906 (1998), 43.892 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor and Commander-in-Chief Sir Francis RICHARDS (since 27 May 2003)
head of government: Chief Minister Peter CARUANA (since 17 May 1996) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed from among the 15 elected members of the House of Assembly by the governor in consultation with the chief minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
chief of state: President Iajuddin AHMED (since 6 Sepember 2002); note - the president's duties are normally ceremonial, but with the 13th amendment to the constitution ("Caretaker Government Amendment"), the president's role becomes significant at times when Parliament is dissolved and a caretaker government is installed - at presidential direction - to supervise the elections
head of government: Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA (since 10 October 2001) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term; election scheduled for 16 September 2002 was not held since Iajuddin AHMED was the only presidential candidate; he was sworn in on 6 September 2002 (next election to be held by NA 2007); following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Iajuddin AHMED declared by the Election Commission elected unopposed as president; percent of National Parliament vote - NA% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $6.6 billion (2001) |
Exports - commodities | (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8% | garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood |
Exports - partners | Germany 25.6%, France 24.8%, UK 14.3%, Turkmenistan 9.4%, Switzerland 7.5%, Spain 5.6% (2003) | US 31.8%, Germany 10.9%, UK 7.9%, France 5.2%, Netherlands 5.2%, Italy 4.42% (2000) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | two horizontal bands of white (top, double width) and red with a three-towered red castle in the center of the white band; hanging from the castle gate is a gold key centered in the red band | green with a large red disk slightly to the hoist side of center; the red sun of freedom represents the blood shed to achieve independence; the green field symbolizes the lush countryside, and secondarily, the traditional color of Islam |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $500 million (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $230 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 30%
industry: 18% services: 52% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,500 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,750 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 5.6% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 36 8 N, 5 21 W | 24 00 N, 90 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea | most of the country is situated on deltas of large rivers flowing from the Himalayas: the Ganges unites with the Jamuna (main channel of the Brahmaputra) and later joins the Meghna to eventually empty into the Bay of Bengal |
Highways | total: 29 km
paved: 29 km unpaved: 0 km (2002) |
total: 201,182 km
paved: 19,112 km unpaved: 182,070 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 29% |
Illicit drugs | - | transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries |
Imports | NA (2001) | $8.7 billion (2001) |
Imports - commodities | fuels, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs | machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, raw cotton, food, crude oil and petroleum products, cement |
Imports - partners | Spain 26.5%, UK 14.8%, Russia 8.2%, Italy 6.6%, Netherlands 6.5%, France 5.3%, Germany 4.6%, Romania 4.2% (2003) | India 10.5%, EU 9.5%, Japan 9.5%, Singapore 8.5%, China 7.4% (2000) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 16 December 1971 (from West Pakistan); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is known as Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 6.2% (2001 est.) |
Industries | tourism, banking and finance, ship repairing, tobacco | cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar |
Infant mortality rate | total: 5.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.81 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
68.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (1998) | 5.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | Interpol (subbureau), UPU | AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 10 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 38,440 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal | Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 14,800 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) (1999) | 64.1 million (1998)
note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $1.71 billion in 1998-99 (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture negligible, industry 40%, services 60% | agriculture 63%, services 26%, industry 11% (FY95/96) |
Land boundaries | total: 1.2 km
border countries: Spain 1.2 km |
total: 4,246 km
border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 60.7%
permanent crops: 2.61% other: 36.69% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese | Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English |
Legal system | English law | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly (18 seats - 15 elected by popular vote, one appointed for the Speaker, and two ex officio members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 November 2003 (next to be held not later than February 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - GSD 58%, GSLP 41%; seats by party - GSD 8, GSLP 7 |
unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies (the constitutional amendment reserving 30 seats for women over and above the 300 regular parliament seats expired in May 2001); members serve five-year terms
elections: last held 1 October 2001 (next to be held before October 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - BNP and alliance partners 46%, AL 42%; seats by party - BNP 201, AL 62, JI 18, JP (Ershad faction) 14, IOJ 2, JP (Naziur) 1, other 4; note - the election of October 2001 brought a majority BNP government aligned with three other smaller parties - Jamaat-i-Islami, Islami Oikya Jote, and Jatiya Party (Naziur) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.52 years
male: 76.65 years female: 82.54 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 60.92 years
male: 61.08 years female: 60.74 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: above 80% male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 56% male: 63% female: 49% (2000 est.) |
Location | Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern coast of Spain | Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India |
Map references | Europe | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm | contiguous zone: 18 NM
continental shelf: up to the outer limits of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 133 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 980,636 GRT/1,254,661 DWT
by type: bulk 3, cargo 69, chemical tanker 14, container 27, multi-functional large load carrier 3, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 13, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: Belgium 1, Cyprus 3, Denmark 1, Estonia 1, France 1, Germany 92, Greece 11, Hong Kong 2, Iceland 1, Monaco 4, Norway 6, Spain 1, United Kingdom 6, United States 2 registered in other countries: 4 (2004 est.) |
total: 34 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 269,932 GRT/379,271 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 26, container 3, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1, includes s foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Singapore 5 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK; the last British regular infantry forces left Gibraltar in 1992, replaced by the Royal Gibraltar Regiment | - |
Military branches | Royal Gibraltar Regiment | Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, paramilitary forces (includes Bangladesh Rifles, Bangladesh Ansars, Village Defense Parties, Armed Police Battalions, National Cadet Corps) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $559 million (FY96/97) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.8% (FY96/97) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 37,303,372 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 22,139,736 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | National Day, 10 September (1967); note - day of the national referendum to decide whether to remain with the UK or go with Spain | Independence Day, 26 March (1971); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh |
Nationality | noun: Gibraltarian(s)
adjective: Gibraltar |
noun: Bangladeshi(s)
adjective: Bangladeshi |
Natural hazards | NA | droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season |
Natural resources | none | natural gas, arable land, timber, coal |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -0.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | natural gas 1,250 km |
Political parties and leaders | Gibraltar Liberal Party [Joseph GARCIA]; Gibraltar Social Democrats or GSD [Peter CARUANA]; Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party or GSLP [Joseph John BOSSANO] | Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA]; Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP [Saifuddin Ahmed MANIK]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIA, chairperson]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ [Mufti Fazlul Haq AMINI]; Jamaat-E-Islami or JI [Motiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP (Ershad faction) [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]; Jatiya Party (Manzur faction) [[Naziur Rahman MANZUR] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization; Women's Association | NA |
Population | 27,833 (July 2004 est.) | 133,376,684 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 36% |
Population growth rate | 0.19% (2004 est.) | 1.59% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Gibraltar | Chittagong, Dhaka, Mongla Port, Narayanganj (2001) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Radios | - | 6.15 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total: 2,745 km
broad gauge: 923 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2000 est.) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 76.9%, Church of England 6.9%, Muslim 6.9%, Jewish 2.3%, none or other 7% (1991) | Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.18 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal, plus other UK subjects who have been residents six months or more | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate, automatic domestic system and adequate international facilities
domestic: automatic exchange facilities international: country code - 350; radiotelephone; microwave radio relay; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: totally inadequate for a modern country
domestic: modernizing; introducing digital systems; trunk systems include VHF and UHF microwave radio relay links, and some fiber-optic cable in cities international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); international radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring countries (2000) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 24,512 (2002) | 500,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 9,797 (2002) | 283,000 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus three low-power repeaters) (1997) | 15 (1999) |
Terrain | a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar | mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 1.65 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.72 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2% (2001 est.) | 35% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | up to 8,046 km depending on season
note: includes 3,058 km main cargo routes |